A senior Hezbollah official said Wednesday that the Lebanese terrorist group would refrain from intervening militarily if the United States carries out limited strikes on Iran, but warned that any attempt to topple the regime or target Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei would trigger a response.

Speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, the official said, “In the event of limited US strikes on Iran, Hezbollah’s position will be to not intervene militarily.” However, the official added that if Washington sought to “provoke the downfall of the Iranian regime or to target the supreme leader, Hezbollah will then intervene.”

Hezbollah’s secretary-general, Naim Qassem, has previously described the group as being in a “defensive position,” but has also suggested it would view itself as “targeted” in the event of a U.S. attack on Iran, its principal backer.

The Hezbollah official told AFP that in a scenario where the United States attempts to unseat Iran’s leadership, Israel would “inevitably wage a war against Lebanon.”

Israeli officials have in recent weeks intensified airstrikes targeting Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, citing concerns that the Iran-backed group could join Tehran in a broader confrontation. During the 2023–2024 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli forces said they targeted only Hezbollah-linked sites and not key Lebanese civilian infrastructure.

Two senior Lebanese officials said Tuesday that Israel had recently conveyed an indirect warning that it would respond forcefully — including by striking civilian infrastructure such as Beirut’s airport — if Hezbollah enters a U.S.-Iran conflict.

“There are signs that the Israelis could strike very hard in the event of an escalation, potentially including strategic infrastructure such as the airport,” Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi said Tuesday in Geneva.

Lebanon’s political leadership has publicly urged Hezbollah to avoid actions that could draw the country into another war.

“This war does not concern us,” Raggi said, adding that Lebanese authorities had appealed to Hezbollah not to take steps that would create “bad situations” for civilians.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, whose government has pledged to disarm Hezbollah since taking office, echoed those concerns in a newspaper interview published Tuesday.

“The Gaza adventure imposed a high cost on Lebanon,” Salam said. “We hope that we will not be dragged into another adventure.”

The previous Israel-Hezbollah war began on Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah launched cross-border fire a day after Hamas attacked southern Israel. A November 2024 ceasefire followed an Israeli ground invasion and sustained air campaign that significantly degraded Hezbollah’s capabilities and killed senior leaders.

Under the ceasefire agreement, Hezbollah was required to withdraw and disarm south of the Litani River. Israel has accused the group of maintaining a presence in the area, prompting continued Israeli strikes targeting what it says are attempts to rebuild.

Lebanon’s army last month said it completed the first phase of its disarmament plan covering territory between the Litani River and the Israeli border.

Hezbollah’s latest comments suggest an attempt to calibrate its posture amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran, signaling restraint in the face of limited U.S. action while preserving a potential trigger point tied to Iran’s leadership.

Whether that position holds if hostilities escalate remains an open question in a region already bracing for possible fallout.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)